Brockin' Around the Christmas Tree

'Tis the Season to be jolly. And I am.

Santa has come and gone, the kids made out like banshees, and I've begun my post-Christmas re-org. Out with the old junk and in with the new junk. Isn't there some island or something where I can drop off all of these misfit toys?

The official Christmas season around our house began, as it always does, the day after Thanksgiving. Known to some as Black Friday, we appropriately call it "Brock's Christmas." If you've ever been around us on this day, you know EXACTLY what I'm talking about. He buys himself so much stuff on this one day that I can't ever justify buying him anything to open on Christmas morning. Everyone in my family looks forward to gathering around when Brock gets home to watch the delight on his boyish face as he unloads bag after bag of booty. It's all always stuff for him, but we enjoy a vicarious shopper's high. This year we were let down when Brock opted not to do his 4 am spree when he just didn't see enough temptation from the ads in the evening paper. Instead, he and the boys went shooting.

Later that day, we headed back to our house from Preston and Brock decided he'd run in to Al's Sporting Goods to see if there was anything left from the big sale. The three hungry kids and I stayed in the car while he just "ran" in. Fifty-four minutes later...Out walks Brock with a shopping cart overflowing and a satisfied grin. He piles everything in the back and then climbs in the front and looks at me like Karlee looks at me when she's being naughty but also knows she's being cute. Before I can even say anything my eye catches something shiny, I follow it, and to my bewilderment, I find he is wearing an earring in his left ear. We stared blankly at each others faces for a good 10 seconds before I could open my mouth to ask what the heck he was doing. He proceeds to explain that everything was a screamin' deal, and I'm going no, no, why are you wearing an earring?

After feeling his ear, a light clicking on in his eyes, and then some good belly laughing, he explained what happened. I guess when they came home from shooting, my dad found a little link to a key ring chain or something and asked if it was his. Brock told him thanks and put it in his ear to be funny. He just didn't know how funny he was going to be when he forgot it was there. It really put me in the holiday mood.

In fact, Brock has kept me smiling all month long. It's been little things like him wearing his Eagles Santa hat around the house and big things like the 14 foot snowman he built in our yard on Christmas day. His public performance of Mr. Grinch on the Polar Express and staying up with him til 2 playing karaoke revolution on the XBOX. For some reason this holiday season I've enjoyed a heightened awareness of what a fun guy I'm married to and it's been one of the best gifts I've ever received.

Love this guy...

And Now You Know How My Diary Feels

I have a journal in which every entry begins with "Dear Diary, I'm sorry it's been so long since I wrote. I promise I'm going to write more. This time I mean it..." I got that journal when I was in the first grade and half its pages are still empty.

But this is not that journal.

This is my blog and I had been without my computer until Saturday. That is not an excuse. That is my reason why.

Another thing I would do in my journal (after apologizing for my sporadic record-keeping) is write a really, really long, yet completely undetailed/unorganized account of everything that happened since I last made an entry. You know--something like "Merry Christmas! Sorry it's been so long. In May, school got out and I had a fun summer..."

What I'm about to do is very similar. But with pictures...

I looked like this at the hospital just before I begat Adric.

Adric was a little sour at the nurses for making us wait for the doctor to come

before they'd let me push him out.

But he got over it and went to sleep.

Karlee had her 3rd Birthday.

She had some of her 'neighbors' over for a little party. (She calls her friends 'my neighbors').

Kade didn't care much for the party, but he thought the cake was good.

We had a week of the most beautiful warm weather fall has ever seen.

We spent most of that time outside...

Then there was Halloween...

Kade thought the whole thing was pretty tasty.

Karlee thought it was all so fun and spooky.

Adric didn't get too excited. He just slept.

They were all happy to take a bath when the whole thing was over.

What? They don't look happy? Well, Adric was happy to take his first bath.

I love cuddling with a clean baby fresh out of the tub and lathered with lotion.

While I was off being a good mom, Karlee burnt her hand on the element of the stove. 5 days later her hand looked like this. It was too gruesome to photograph before that...

Even with going to the doctor day after day and the Eagles losing week after week, she is still as happy as a cheerleader.

And even though Kade has 3 molars breaking at the same time, there ain't nothing gonna stop a little chocolate pudding from putting a smile on his face.

Or you could just send him outside if you don't want to make pudding.

Oh, and one more picture. The kids were copying Brock when he was doing yoga. Very funny.

Namaste.

Only 2 Weeks Ago

HE'S HERE!!!!!

and has been for a mere 2 weeks. But for a moment, lets pretend that today is October 13th at 5:49 pm. Ready?

1 minute ago, a healthy little baby boy--Adric Ty Williamson-- was born weighing in at 7 lbs 4 oz and measuring 20 inches in length.

Alright, that seems a little less anti-climatic than it otherwise would have. We can go back to the present now.

We are all doing very, very well. The reason we haven't sent emails and updated the blog is because on my birthday, we got our identity stolen and the next day our computer crashed from a spy-ware virus. Then a few days later, we had a storm and a power surge and Brock's work computer crashed so he had to send it out to Philly to be fixed. Our home computer is still being fixed so I can't post any pictures.

I'm actually feeling better than I ever have after having a baby. I came home from the hospital the next day and was literally back to business the day after that.

Having 3 kids is not very difficult yet. Adric still sleeps all day. I'm sure it will get crazy once he wakes up long enough to do more than just eat. So far, he's been a great baby. And for ONCE a baby came out of my belly and actually looked like he belonged to me. And like my other kids, he's super CUTE!

I was worried about having 3 kids in diapers, but what I had forgotten is that there would be 4 of us in diapers for a while (me). So last Monday, 4 days after her 3rd birthday, I told Karlee she would never wear a diaper again. We put panties on her and she hasn't had an accident in 5 days! WOOHOO!

Well, it's late here and I have to get sleep while I can. But, if you want pictures and an eye-witness account of the birth, you can check out my sister Missy's blog http://myveryownsoap.blogspot.com/2008/10/awesome.html
(Yes, I said 'eye-witness')

Discovery of Talents

You know the parable of the talents? According to it, we should not bury our talents, but share them so we may gain others. I want my children to have many talents. So, I am going to share, by way of the world wide web, some talents my children possess that I have recently discovered.

I am thinking that Karlee might be a gifted painter. She's pretty creative with her colors, don't you think?

And if she's not really an artist, at least she could play one on TV. She looks pretty artsy-fartsy in that getup she picked out by herself.

And Kade? I am still amazed at his talent. The other day I let him hold a popsicle all by himself, knowing full well I'd have to clean up a huge mess when he was done. But I was wrong--There was no mess. He latched right tight to that thing and sucked it down without making one drip! Isn't that awesome!?! I can't even eat a popsicle without a making a couple drips.

Ya, I'm pretty proud.

Home, Sweet Home

This weekend was our 10 year reunion AND That Famous Preston Night Rodeo, Parade and City of Fun Carnival. I came home so full of nostalgia, salt water taffy and rodeo burgers, that I'm still recovering.

Anyone that knows me, knows of my feelings for my little town of Preston. I'm quite vocal on it's awesomeness. But may I, once again, give accolades to the place I will always call home.

It is THE BEST!!!


Why, you ask? Well, it could be that it's beautiful. Or that it has close access to virtually any kind of outdoor activity you could desire. Maybe it's so darn cool for the mere fact that it is in Idaho, and it is legal to drive 4 wheelers on the streets. The school, the lifestyle, the festiveness. Heck, Rodeo weekend and the Festival of Lights alone puts Preston on the Coolest Towns to Live list. But there are other cool places to live, I know. What sets Preston apart from all other towns and all other places in all of the world is one thing: Preston Pride.


Hmmmm...How do I describe the feeling of Preston Pride? It's not the typical, bad kind of 'pride' you should avoid. It is good. It's spiritual. It's a realization of truth. It is the realization of how blessed you are to be in a place so special. You can't see Preston Pride, but you can feel it. It can give you goosebumps or make you cry. It fills you with love, joy and light. And you know that other people feel it, too.

If you are from Preston, you know what I'm talking about. If you're not from Preston, but you've been to Preston, you might have caught that spirit. If you didn't, it is because of the hardness of your heart and the blindness of your mind. And, if you are from Preston and you don't have that pride, I'd say that is parallel to being born Under the Covenant and never finding a testimony.


Anyway, it was a great weekend. It was so good to see so many old friends and familiar faces. I came home with a renewed gratitude for such an awesome upbringing. Never before was there a city so close to perfect. Except for Enoch...and it's gone...

Born in the Latter-days, Under the Covenant AND in Preston...How lucky am I?

Farr West Living

When we could have lived anywhere in Utah, within a reasonable distance to the airport, I'm sure many people wonder why we chose Farr West. Actually, I think everyone just wonders where it even is! In answer to that, it's a small community just west of Pleasant View and north of Ogden. There are cows there and not too many people--which we automatically figured constituted all the makings of a nice, down-to-earth, close-knit community.

We found a house there online for a good deal that looked like it would do. Although we had never actually SEEN the house or Farr West, we bought it--in hopes that it would turn out to be the kind of community we thought it would be. Over the past nine months, the good nature of the town and its people has gradually made itself manifest and we've really started to feel at home. But Sunday afternoon, all our hopes and expectations of Farr West Utah came to fruition.

We had just gotten out of a nice day at church. I had driven separately to go to choir practice earlier that morning, so Brock took the kids to load up with him. When I pull around the parking lot, I see that Brock has Kade in his car seat and Karlee on his lap--smiling and holding the steering wheel. I give him a shake of the head and a tap on the horn, but they both just smile and wave. So they go on ahead of me and pull out onto the main road, speed limit 50 mph, where lo and behold, the very first vehicle coming towards us in the opposite lane happens to be the Sheriff. I immediately plan in my mind the next hours of my life bailing Brock out of jail, explaining his Brittany Spears behavior and fighting the CPA for custody of my kids and then... something wonderful happens! The Sheriff gives them a nice big grin and the old one-finger-off-the-steering-wheel wave and keeps right on going! And that's when we knew, then and there...This was truly the kind of town we could plant some roots in.

Long Lost

If you check blogs a lot AND you have your sound on, you might be ready to strangle me. Mariachi music has that effect on people, I know. All apologies.

But hip-hip hooray for nice weather and actually having places to go and people to see. Here's a quick photo tour of where we've been since we weren't on the blog scene over the past month:

Oh yeah. IT'S A BOY!!!

First, (a month ago) we went to St. George and stayed with the Gunns. We watched Ryan complete his first triathlon and then spent a little catch up time (while hiking around Zions) with our all-time favorite next door neighbors.

We LOVE the GUNNS!!
If you could hie to Kolob, this is what you'd see. It was our favorite part of ZNP...

Next it was birthday time for Kade. He's 1! As you can see, he didn't care much for the presents.

But he dove right into that cake!

We've done tons of yard work over the last month. And I really do mean TONS. We had 17 loads of dirt brought in that we (by we I pretty much mean Brock) moved around with our little shovels and wheelbarrow...
It's sure nice to have a yard for the kiddies to play in though.

Next we got Ya-Ya (Brock's mom) married off. They got married in Park City at Jeffrey's house. It was a nice day. Missy did Karlee's hair in curls for the event.

Here's Kade all spiffed out. (We'll post some real wedding pictures withOUT car seats when we get them.)

Brock hiked the Wellsvilles with his Uncle and some of his family. Although he missed church, he reports he came home "spiritually nourished."Then we were the lucky recipients of a visit from the Milmonts!!! We miss them so much! It was great to see Luke & Em and have Owen and Kade together again to see how much they've grown.

We don't have any pictures but we also had a little reunion with the Chuds and with Chuck & Lindsay before they moved to Alaska. We had a little BBQ and played some nice volleyball in our back yard. It was so great to be hanging out with them again. We miss all of our PA friends, so if you ever come to town, you better call!

We spent last weekend at Bear Lake in Colton's family cabin with Kels and the kids and Missy and Colton. My parents came over for a round of golf on Saturday with us. We golfed, played some volleyball, ate a lot of junk and spent some time at the water. Fun times.
Kade 's favorite part was running around on the deck.

Karlee liked the beach.

Kade...? Kade didn't like the beach so much. (Don't worry, he's red from the tantrum he's throwing, not from sunburn.)

Child Deprivation

Remember when your friend in 5th grade told you her rabbit just had babies and that she would give you one for FREE because you were her friend and you were special and bunnies are so sweet and soft and wasn't it great that you were going to have your very own bunny to hold and cuddle and love and maybe even sleep with in your bed!? You ran off the bus and into the house and to your parents where your hopes were immediately extinguished with a firm and definite "NO WAY."

You want an explanation? Okay. "What are you going to do with a bunny?"

You want to talk about it? Sure. "You'll understand when you're older."

Well, I am a lot older but I don't understand. Or didn't understand until I found myself bidding on 2 ducks at the ward auction last week. The auction was mostly service but someone had donated 2 baby ducks to see if anyone wanted them. Funny, it didn't strike me as odd I was the only one bidding. (Woohoo, less I had to pay!) So I won the ducks for $10 measly bucks. Brock asked me what the heck I just did and what was I going to do with ducks. But that was all easy to ignore. I just won 2 ducks!

Happy and on my way to to pay the cashier I was now inundated by ward members with that same irking question: "What are you going to do with a pair of ducks?" Amazing how such a pointless query from your parents or husband can have a deep and penetrating impact when someone else asks it. The wheels finally started to turn. Then I started to panic. What WAS I going to do with a pair of ducks?!!

After some deep breathing I decided my only option was to take it one step at a time. So, first thing I did was take them home. Then I gave them some water and some food. I let the kids play with them until bedtime. Then I took them outside for the night. (And for good--They are much too smelly to ever let back in the house.)

I'm happy to report the ducks are now doing well and growing fast. They roam around our backyard living a leisurely life (except for when Karlee goes out to chase them). I've since concluded that baby ducks are the perfect pet. You only need to take care of them for a few weeks, they grow their wings and then you say goodbye and take them to a pond to live free or die. Taking care of a pet is no thing when it's only temporary.

Bunnies, Bunnies, and More Bunnies

Happy Easter one and all. We hope you all had a good one.

Ours was great, complete with 3 egg hunts, lots of candy, good food and gorgeous weather. When the weekend had ended the kids came away with a total of 5 plush bunnies (one of them as big as Karlee). Not sure what I'm going to do with them all-- You know how I feel about bears. But maybe I should start a bunny collection. It's sort of fitting because Brock and I have a lot in common with bunnies. We not only play Easter Bunny once a year but we share another defining characteristic. No, not the ears. Not the fluffy tail. No, we're not herbivores. If you can't think of the OTHER commonality, forget it! I'm not going to explain! What I'm getting at is that we are expecting another baby!
Yes, yes. That would make 3 under 3. How, why? Well, it could be one of many reasons.
1. The obvious reason is we're crazy.
2. We try to keep up with Amy and Steve.
3. I wanted to make sure I was 8 months pregnant for my 10-year reunion.
4. I was afraid I wouldn't be hot enough this summer.
5. I like big butts and I cannot lie.
6. I was getting bored.
7. I don't know what I would do with the extra $40 a month I spend on diapers once Karlee is potty trained.
8. We wanted an excuse to skip out on the Peru trip this summer. Machu Picchu probably isn't all that special anyway.
9. 'Rhythm' isn't a good method if you can't find a beat.
10. Really, I couldn't tell you how or why I'm pregnant again. But I CAN tell you that we are ever so excited for the addition!

It's always something

It's human nature, I suppose, that makes us think that we will be happy when __________ . (You fill in the blank-- ie. it's spring, you buy a new dress, lose some weight, yada yada.) Now, I don't agree with that way of thinking. I think, as Abe (Honest Abe, that is) said, "Most folks are about as happy as they make their minds up to be." But...can I just say that I will be SO happy when Brock is done with this stupid test!!!

I honestly can't take it anymore!!!!

Brock's taking the CFP (Certified Financial Planner) exam at the end of this month. So, for the past 3 months, after putting in his 8+ at the office, he studies 3-5 hours more. Then on weekends, he studies ALL day. He is really busting it and I'm sure he can't wait for it to be over. But I'm sure I'm even more eager for it to end. I try to be tough during the week, but especially when Saturday rolls around and I still get no change in scenery, I about go nuts.

What's sad is that only the top 30% will pass the test, so statistically speaking, there's a good chance we'll be doing this all over in the fall when they offer it again. It's a really big deal if--I mean when-- he does pass it. So, I'm trying to be a soldier here and think of the greater good.

Today stunk. No real reason. I think I just reached my breaking point. Brock's in Boise and the kids and I were inside all day looking out at the yucky weather. Anyway, I spent the day looking forward to bedtime, which is a pretty unfortunate way to spend your life. The highlight of my day was listening to the satellite repair man make fart noises and blame it on Karlee's penguin.

I guess although I don't have a husband--for yet another 2 1/2 weeks--at least I'm in good company, right?

Aren't my kids cute?

Why, yes, they are!

It's always better when it's free

So it's been a while. But that's not because of laziness. It's because of busyness--Which is much better than laziness.

To play a little catch-up, we'll start with the good stuff. Brock won an award at work and so SEI (love that company) gave him a limo for the night and a fat allowance at any restaurant of our choice. The 4 other people back in Philly that won were using it to go bar hopping all night. We opted for a night on the town with Donie and Nyla (Brock's parents). We told them to dress nice and meet us at our house and we'd take them out to dinner. We didn't tell them about the limo until it was here to pick us up. We had a good time and it was nice to have some quality conversation and food with the in-laws.

We went to Wolf Creek Resort and Grill. I had the Ahi and Brock had the Elk. YUM. Oh, and the desserts...We somehow found room for 4 of them.

His sisters and brother watched the kids, so after dinner, we took them in the limo to get some ice cream at the drive-thru. It was a lot of fun. And, I must say, it was even more fun because the whole, big night was free. I think there's a lot more enjoyment in pretending to be rich than in actually being rich. (Mo money, mo problems, foo.) I guess that means when I'm rich, I'll pretend to be poor when I'm looking for a good time.


Brock was in San Francisco last week so the kids and I headed up to Preston (also referred to as God's Country). It's always fun when you can get all the Leonard kids together at old 1797. Then Monday we had a girls day at my house. Mom, Missy, Kelsey and I went to a movie, out to Farr's ice cream, and to the Salomon Center to goof around. I love girls' days!

Oh, and have you SEEN the new google maps 'street view'? You can actually see our house on it! Not the roof, but the real thing! Nuts!

Sendin' Out the Love

I often speak of my dislike for Winnie the Pooh, Mickey and the like WHEN adults wear them on their clothes. If you enjoy wearing authorized Disney apparel, I don't mean to offend you. Love the sinner, hate the sin. I know my imperfect sense of fashion doesn't give me the right to cast a stone. But I'm not really trying to throw rocks here, I'm just saying I don't like it.

I also have a particular annoyance for the collection of teddy bears. I'm well aware I could be stirring up all sorts of controversy by saying so--There must be some serious teddy bear lovers out there if they can pay $80 and MORE for the things. Again, not casting stones...I just don't understand it.

Yesterday, I received a special Valentine catalogue for VERMONT TEDDY BEARS and apparently, teddy bears have a strange and magical power to, uh, "Make (Your) Heart Skip a Beat." The cover had 2 bears in their UNDERWEAR and 1 tantalizing question: Boxers or Briefs? Well obviously, that really set off my curiosity so I commenced exploration of the magazine.

Supposedly, if you give a girl one of these bears for Valentines this year, "She'll think of you everytime she takes her bear to bed" and "You'll get the reaction you're hoping for." If Brock got me one of these Teddy Bears for Valentine's Day, he'd get a reaction, alright, but it wouldn't be pleasant.

Some of these bears actually did remind me of some of you. They might not have done anything for me, but perhaps one of these bears will tickle YOUR fancy. To each his own! For you, one of these bears could be the promised gift of spice for your love life.

***I did NOT make up the names! Assume I chose all of these at absolute random.

"Let's Get Bear Naked" bear goes to Krystal.

To Ginnie goes the "Wild Playbear Bunny."


Lindsey, his name is not McDreamy, but "Loverboy." Look close, his tat says "LT."


Here's "Horny Devil." Emily Max, I believe he belongs to you.



Vanessa--I'm sorry but, I'm afraid I might forever remember Lee as his Halloween costume...It was too perfect.
You get "Red Hot Redneck" bear.


Amy, this might not do anything for you, but I'm thinking Daegan might like it. "Gone Fishing" bear.


Missy, meet "Mr. Right."


Kelsey gets "Handy Bear."


"Nurse Bear" is for Amy K P.


Erica gets the "Let's Monkey Around Bear"


Chelsie gets the dangerous and exciting "Lawyer" bear.


Better yet, Wylie and Laila get the "Accountant."


Rich and Tamara get "Latin Lover" bear.



Emily, "Love Rider" might pacify you until Luke buys you a motorcycle. Or you can give Luke "Motorcycle Mama" bear to inspire him to get you one soon.


Lindsay, it looks like "Gangster of Love" is carrying a violin in that case. He's got a song just for you...




To all my Colony friends, you are obviously attracted to men in scrubs. You each get "Scrubs Bear"

No one wants "Prince Charming." He's boring.



If I had to give one to Brock I guess he'd like "Super Lover" or "Country Lovin'"


If you weren't assigned a bear, and you want one, you can have "Stud Muffin."